Struggling to get back on your feet?
I know all too well how you feel. Trust me, the covid-19 pandemic has impacted us all in ways we never saw coming. Not only did it force many of us to pivot in ways we weren’t prepared for, but it put us in positions to make some very difficult decisions.
Now we also know this, there’s always a blessing on every side of a once perceived “obstacle.” Right?
From the large number of high performing entrepreneurs that I get to work closely with, I’ve noticed that this pandemic has shed much light on what type of business owners we truly are. Its also brought to light what our true nature is. Do we crumble when something uncertain comes our way? Or do we get right back up from falling face down and do whatever we need to do to get the prosperity wheel turning again?
To better understand who are all are at our core, I’ve come up with the three groups below that will better help you understand yourself at the most fundamental level, leading up to how you perform in your line of work.
Check out the three groups below.
Take note of which group you find yourself resonating with most.
Group A)
2019: they were generating ok income
2020: started out hot for Q1, but dropped into the negatives for remainder of year
2021: they are starting back up and are currently operating at same level as they were in 2019
Group B)
2019: they were generating a decent living
2020: slowed down by Q2, but then sped back up to where 2019 was by the end of the year
2021: they started back at a decent stage and are now on a roll to achieve a decent living
Group C)
2019: they were tearing it up; exceeding all of their business goals
2020: slowed down by Q2, but it then BLEW it out of the water before the end of the year
2021: started it out over achieving the goals they previously set for themselves during pandemic
Let's face it, the pandemic impacted us all in tremendous ways. However we have no time to dwell any longer. As the high performing entrepreneur that you are, Im sure that your main focus is to get the best possible results for the work you put out there, right? So let's take a moment to think about this.
How can we take all the lessons we’ve learned in 2020 and apply them in the most strategic and effective way possible? How can we bounce back and view the pandemic as an opportunity to help serve our clients better, as well as leave a bigger impact on those we work closely with?
Assuming you’re coming along for the journey and are ready to help elevate the income your business is currently generating, lets dig in a little deeper here. Looking back at the three groups above, lets take some time to dissect the details out here. Which of the three groups do you find yourself in? Honestly, sit down with yourself and reevaluate the truth behind your situation and why you are where you are today with your business. What could you have done differently in 2019 or 2020 (if only you were prepared for the pandemic)? Now, what would you have done differently if you were not prepared and let's just say (God forbid) another pandemic were to strike? If you find yourself struggling to answer any of these questions, let's take a little break and consider something else.
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Taking yourself out of your shoes and out of all the emotional and mental cycles that tend to spiral in us all from time to time, take a deep breath or hey, maybe take two.
Let me ask you a question, what do you think group C did differently than group A and B? Do you think they were any more special that the entrepreneurs in group A or B? Do you think they had a hand out that the rest of us couldn’t get our hands on? Do you think they had a magic wand that made sure the pandemic didn’t effect their families and/or business?
Ok, I’ll answer those questions on their behalf. So, no…..no……and no. The entrepreneurs in group C didn’t get a hand out nor were they any more special than the other two groups. To answer your last question there, no they sure as heck didn’t use a magic wand to rid themselves from the impacts of the virus either.
Here, I’ll help you guys out here. You wanna know what the entrepreneurs did in group C, in comparison to groups A and B? They thought differently. They didn’t spend much time dwelling on all the countless negatives from the pandemic. They didn’t just throw their hands up and give in to what they saw on the news. In fact, they strayed far from it! These rockstars chose to look at the pandemic simply as an opportunity. An opportunity where they able to quickly pivot their business models and get the most appropriate changes in place as soon as possible. They went back to the drawing board and mapped out the exact changes they needed to implement immediately. In other words, they simply took less time to think about what they needed to do and pivoted their business models in no time. They simply worked as if their lives depended on it.
Ok so now that you’ve gotten an inside scoop on how group C is tearing it up, lets circle back to the previous questions I asked above. What could you have done differently if only you were prepared for the pandemic? Now, what would you have done differently if you were not prepared and lets just say (God forbid) another pandemic were to strike?
I know, the truth hurts sometimes.
But let me be the one to tell you, it’ll eventually subside and before you know it, the universe will be sending you the prosperity that you deserve.
Now that we’ve gain some ground on where we stand at this very moment, we can begin to implement some of my top five strategies below to help you increase your business income now, pandemic or no pandemic. I do have my downloadable free workbook attached here, which you can you use to follow along with. Let's do this!
Step #1: GAIN CLARITY
1. Does your product/service solve a problem? (the more honest you can be with yourself, the sooner you can improve your income)
Try to be as specific as possible here. Make sure you address the specific problem you solve, who you solve that problem for and why its such an important and worthwhile area to cater your business services and products towards.
2. Whats not working?/ What do you need help with? (product development, limit overhead, increase conversion rate, etc.)
Keep one thing in mind here, whichever area of improvement you don’t acknowledge now, be mindful that it will eventually affect you down the road. The best way to get this going would be to first start off with the areas within your business that you know need improvement in. These can be the same areas that you told yourself weeks or even worse, months ago that they’d fix themselves. We’ve all been there, so no judgement here. But hey, now is the time to get things moving and improvement flowing in!
Step #2: OUTSOURCE YOUR WEAKNESSES
1. What skills do you lack or don’t have the time to learn? (friendly reminder: either you fix the problem or hire someone else who will)
This has got to be one of the easiest tasks to complete. You simply look over your business model and evaluate which areas you need help in. If its a skill you don’t know how to complete and/or you don’t have the time to dedicate to, outsource it. You’ll thank me here. Will it cost you capital to make the investment? Of course it will. But hey look at it this way, consider how much your currently hourly rate is right now. Multiple it by the number of hours you have to learn or complete this task, chances are you’re better off hiring an expert to take care of that task. So yes my friends, lets outsource it…like yesterday.
2. Make a list of who you need to hire ASAP
This will help with the organization piece here. The best way to go about this would be to simply list out the skills you need to hire for(reference my free workbook to assist here). Once you got this going, then start looking around for the talent you need to hire. My number one recommendation here would be to first ask your close circle fo entrepreneur friends. Most likely they know of or they themselves can help you achieve this goal. Worst case scenario, look on freelancer sites like upwork or fiverr pro to outsource there as well. You have the option of hiring either domestically or internationally, depending on your budget and the turn around time.
Step #3: MEASURE YOUR IMPROVEMENT
1. What's the timeline you expect to see results by? -list every. single. area. (staying organized is extremely important here)
(If you find yourself needing with this step, go back to lesson 2 and hire someone to help get you where you need to go).
Time is way more valuable than money. With that, lets consider planning out deadlines for these completes tasks. This will help you stay on top of what needs to be done and be able to track it with the help of the freelancer that you hired. In order to ensure everyone is on the same page, I’d recommend you ask for their turn around time during your first call/interaction with them. This will help you vet out who can get the job done by what timeframe and so forth.
2. Clearly define what your timelines are below and check off as you go
This is self-explanatory. I highly recommend you use the free workbook to help you stay on top of this.
Step #4: LEVERAGE ALL RELATIONSHIPS
1. How can you leverage your current relationships to improve your income? (friendly reminder: despite your industry, we're all in the people biz ;)
Oh yes we are! Maintaining healthy professional relationships will not only get you to where you need to be, but they will also ensure that you can help others along the way also. We are a product of our environment, that goes for your colleagues, business partners and clients. I highly recommend your utilize your resources strategically, to help one another. You’ll soon notice, its a win-win scenario!
2. How could you implement the following incentives?
LOYALTY PROGRAM REFERRAL PROGRAM
(IMPROVE RETENTION: EXISTING BIZ) (IMPROVE CLIENT ACQUISITION: NEW BIZ)
Step #5: RINSE N REPEAT
1. How can you realistically implement a plan that will put you in a place to consistently achieve your business goals? (don’t wait until end of quarter/year, plan it out ASAP)
I recommend you go over these steps as often as needed. The more you get into this habit of giving your business a fresh reset, the higher its chances of your consistently hitting your revenue goals. Remember, if you’re not building a good habit, chances are you’re building a bad one.
2. Every 30-90 days, re-evaluate the following:
Step #1: GAIN CLARITY:
Step #2: OUTSOURCE YOUR WEAKNESSES:
Step #3: MEASURE YOUR IMPROVEMENT:
Step #4: LEVERAGE ALL RELATIONSHIPS
Step #5: RINSE N REPEAT:
You’re on your way to more income my friend! Keep the good work up, and hey Im always here to guide you along the way. Feel free to connect with me by email or social, for more!
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Until next time my friends, keep your head up and know that whatever “obstacle” that comes your way throughout your business journey, its really just a blessing in disguise.
XO
-Bauer
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